Canada’s public health minister said Monday that several high-profile US figures should stay away from Canada’s internal affairs, after several Republicans backed protests against anti-pandemic restrictions.
Protesters have occupied downtown Ottawa for more than a week and the mayor has requested an additional 2,000 police officers, a day after declaring a state of emergency.
This decision and request followed a demonstration called the ‘Freedom Truck Column’, which paralyzed downtown in the Canadian capital, with hundreds of vehicles parked.
The protests also angered people living nearby, including in neighborhoods close to the center of the federal government.
Ottawa Police Chief Peter Sloly called the demonstration “an unprecedented protest, never before seen in Canada” and acknowledged that authorities had failed to anticipate its duration.
Many US Republicans have voiced their support for the protesters, including Donald Trump, who branded Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau a “leftist madman”, accusing him of “devastating Canada with insane obligations” related to the new coronavirus.
The protesters vowed not to relent until all vaccine obligations and restrictions related to the new coronavirus were lifted.
Among the Republicans supporting the Canadian protesters are Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, Texas Attorney General, and Texas Senator Ted Cruz.
A former US ambassador to Canada, Bruce Heyman, said US-based groups should stop interfering in the internal affairs of the US neighbor.
One of the most recent developments is an injunction by the Superior Court of Ontario banning truck drivers parked in downtown Ottawa from honking their horns non-stop.
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